In photo: British Chamber of Commerce Philippines Executive Director and Trustee Chris Nelson
File photo/THEPHILBIZNEWS
By Victoria ‘NIKE” De Dios
Having been painstaking working to bring more investors from the UK, and at the same time see an economic rebound in the Philippines as the country moves closer on the last quarter of the year, British Chamber of Commerce Philippines Executive Director and Trustee Chris Nelson renewed the call to the government to urgently pass the three key economic bills before the end of October.
In a TV interview today, Nelson underscored the needed long-term measures to attract foreign direct investments relevant to supporting the country’s economic recovery, referring to the Retail Trade Liberalisation Act, Public Services Act, and the Foreign Investments Act. “The Philippines only receives about 4% of all FDI in ASEAN. We want to see that figure raised,” Nelson said. He further noted that the passage of the three aforementioned bills alongside effective management of the COVID-19 pandemic will bring in renewed interest in the country as well as the creation of job opportunities.
In a recent report by the Bangko Sentral, a 60.4% increase has been recorded in the Philippines’ FDI rates in June 2021. Significantly, the Chamber views that these figures could further increase once the government has passed additional investment-friendly reforms. “We want to see the Philippines being a primary entry point [for foreign investments],” Nelson added.
Nelson also mentioned the Chamber’s strong support for Joey Concepcion’s Bakuna Bubble as a way to gradually commence activity in the business cities of the Philippines. He mentioned that vaccinating the people as well as positively incentivizing the Filipinos will help in safely reopening the economy. The Bakuna bubble is reported to allow and provide mobility for vaccinated people while keeping the unvaccinated people protected from the virus.
The Chamber sees continued interest in the Philippines’ retail sector as well as the food and beverage and advanced manufacturing sector. Thus, the Chamber looks forward to promoting the many opportunities growing in the country to foreign investors with its upcoming events, one of which is an event welcoming the new British Ambassador to the Philippines, Ambassador-Designate Laure Beaufils on Thursday, 16 September 2021 entitled, “Welcoming a Strengthened UK-PH Relations.”
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